Controlling cholesterol is crucial for preventing lifestyle diseases like heart disease and high blood pressure. To manage cholesterol effectively, maintaining a balanced diet is key. Incorporating foods like almonds, oats, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables can help regulate cholesterol levels. Alongside diet, regular exercise is essential.
Alongside adopting a healthy diet, prioritizing regular exercise is key for maintaining heart health. Embrace these dietary changes and commit to staying active to regulate cholesterol levels and promote well-being. We explore foods that, when part of your daily meals, aid in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels shared by Ritika Samaddar, Regional Head of Dietetics at Max Healthcare, New Delhi.
Almonds: Almonds are a nutrient powerhouse, containing 15 essential nutrients such as protein, magnesium, calcium, and zinc. Incorporating almonds into your diet can help lower total and LDL cholesterol levels while reducing inflammation that damages the heart. Snacking on a handful of almonds can also improve HDL cholesterol, reduce belly fat, and decrease waist circumference, all of which are risk factors for heart disease. You can easily incorporate almonds into your diet by adding them to salads, desserts, or smoothies for a nutritious boost, thanks to their versatility.
Whole Grains and Oats: Incorporating whole grains into your diet offers numerous health benefits, including improved blood pressure, reduced risk of cardiovascular diseases, weight management, and lower LDL cholesterol levels. Oats, in particular, are effective in reducing cholesterol and decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease. To include whole grains and oats in your meals, opt for oatmeal or whole grain cereals at breakfast, use whole grain flour in baking, add cooked whole grains to salads or soups, blend oats into smoothies, and choose whole grain bread for sandwiches.
Fruits: A diet rich in fruits can greatly improve lipid health due to their fiber content, high water levels, and low saturated fat. These factors not only lower cholesterol but also control hunger, promote satiety, and aid in weight maintenance. To effortlessly include fruits in your diet, blend them into smoothies, add them to cereal, yogurt, or salads, enjoy them as wholesome snacks, create fruit-infused water or frozen treats, and incorporate them into baking and savory dishes for a nutritious boost.
Garlic: Adding garlic to your diet regularly can lower total and LDL cholesterol levels. Enhance your meals by incorporating garlic into cooking, roasting it for spreads, sautéing it with vegetables, or including it in salads, dips, and curries. For extra flavor, sprinkle garlic powder or infuse it into traditional dishes like dals.
